Q: What kind of challenges do you face in campaigning?

A: The election budget is the main challenge for many ethnic parties. To speak frankly, we can’t carry
out campaign work as we want and we face the challenge of not being able to compete on par with our rival parties. Another challenge is that the public still doesn’t understand the election well. I have seen many people who still don’t know whether they should cast their votes with a pen or a stamp. So, I think we will lose many of the votes we need on election day. The rest is up to the commission [Union Election Commission].

Q: Will this election be a fair election?
A: It’s too early to say whether this will be a free and fair election even though there are weaknesses. I believe we can only decide after the election.

Q: I have learned that the public doesn’t know that they should go and check the voter list and the updated list released by the election commission still has many errors. How much could this affect the election?

A: We will face issues of people being unable to vote due to errors in the voter list and their names not being included on the list. If we were to talk on a nationwide level….although there are 31 million eligible voters, how many of them will vote? For example, will only 40 or 50 percent of the eligible voters vote? This will have many affects. But according to the first past the post system, the winner takes all. The results will reveal the winners and losers so I don’t think less numbers of voters will seriously affect the election’s result.

Q: It’s only been five months since permission has been granted for your party’s establishment so what kind of expectations do you have for the upcoming election?

A: As we formed the party five months ago we entered the election period without any expectations. There are many challenges, but we are working with other political forces and social organizations such as literature and culture [groups] to pass this short election period. It will be a waste for us to run in the election without their support and cooperation. However, we expect to win a percentage and obtain the success that we deserve. We don’t expect to win all. We probably won’t even win half a percentage [of the vote].

Q: When the party was first established, you talked about the Red Shan National Conference.

Have you abandoned this aim now? When do you plan to carry it out?

A: Regarding this, I want to refer to our party as a second party. I don’t want to say we separated from the other party. We are working separately due to differences in principles and vision. This is our party’s main aim. We fully believe that political dialogues is the answers to completely alleviate all our suffering. We will never abandon this. Even if we don’t win a place in the election, the party will continue to exist. We will continue to carry out tasks to gain the rights of our Red Shan people and have political equality.

Q: A new government may be formed in 2015. The ceasefire is carried out by the existing government so what do you expect the impact of the nationwide ceasefire agreement when it comes to effect after the new government comes to office? What kind of benefit will our people receive if there have been changes in the agreement during the next government’s term?

A: I believe it will get worse. It’s been nearly seven decades since the country regained her independence. There wasn’t been any strong cooperation between the military, the government and ethnic organizations during those times unlike now. That’s why the current situation is the closest answer to a ceasefire processes that must be carried out by either the current government or the next government. Our desire is for both sides to carry out the task for the public’s benefit after reaching an agreement in order to have the peace that is wanted by the public.

Q: What kind of promises do you want to give to the public regarding this election?

A: Our aim for the election is to have political fairness and equality. We won’t be able to carry out tasks for the benefit of our people and work for the development and recognition of our people, preserve our culture and literature and have better transportation without peace and stability. No matter how many roads and factories we build and no matter how well the business is, we have already suffered the consequences of a lack of stability and we are still enduring them. So, I believe peace is the most important thing for the development and fulfilment of the desires of our people.

Translation by Thida Linn with editing by BNI staff.